2014-15 Season

Miscellaneous

Rice Announces Changes to Bronco Coaching StaffLeon Rice announced the promotion of John Rillie to assistant coach, Wednesday. Coach Rice also announced the addition of Chris Cobbina to the staff as director of basketball operations.

BOISE, Idaho – Boise State University men’s basketball head coach Leon Rice announced the promotion of John Rillie to assistant coach, Wednesday. Coach Rice also announced the addition of Chris Cobbina to the staff as director of basketball operations.

Rillie had served as the director of basketball operations for the Broncos this past season and will fill the position vacated by Shaun Vandiver, who was named head coach at Emporia State earlier this summer.

Cobbina joins the Broncos from St. Mary’s Ryken High School in Leonardtown, Md., where he served as associate head coach for the 2010-11 season.

“John did a terrific job for us last year and we were fortunate to be able to move him up,” Rice said. “Chris has been a Division I director of operations and he’s got a great future in college basketball.”

Prior to joining the Boise State staff in 2010, Rillie was playing and coaching basketball in Australia, his native country. He began his coaching career in 2009, working in the Townsville Junior Basketball Association. In 2010 he was an assistant coach for both the Townsville Heat/Lightning U16 and North Queensland U16 teams.

Rillie played collegiate basketball for Gonzaga for three seasons, where he helped lead the Bulldogs to the first NCAA Tournament appearance in school history in 1995 and a National Invitation Tournament berth in 1994. His playing career began at Tacoma Community College in Tacoma, Wash., where he played one season (1991-92) before transferring to Gonzaga.

Following the completion of his collegiate career, Rillie spent 16 years playing professional basketball internationally. From 1997-2004 Rillie was also a member of the Australian National Team, which he represented in the 2004 Athens Olympics.

Prior to his season with St. Mary’s Ryken, Cobbina had worked at Ohio University as a graduate assistant from 2008-10, earning his master’s degree in recreation and sports sciences-coaching education in 2010. While with the Bobcats, Cobbina handled team travel, organized team camps and community service activities, coordinated film exchange and served as the team’s equipment liaison.

Cobbina played collegiate basketball for Ohio Valley University in Vienna, W.V., from 2002-06. He was a three-time member of the All-West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Team, and served as team captain as both a junior and senior. The two-time Dean’s List member graduated with a degree in secondary social studies with a certification in special education in 2006.